Lennon Revealed

There have been many books written about the life of John Lennon. They tell you about major milestones, facts and fiction, bed-ins, lost weekends and bread baking. They tell you everything imaginable about John down to his preference of breakfast cereal. But Larry Kane’s Lennon Revealed is different from these books. It portrays John’s sensitivity, compassion and his insecurities. It portrays John as a living, breathing human being, faults and all.

The retelling of stories from Ticket To Ride gives the reader a bit of deja-vu in Lennon Revealed. But with the mix of great interviews and the author’s exquisite writing, your deja-vu will be a distant memory. Now to the good stuff…

The interviews in Lennon Revealed were a wonderful glimpse into the world of Lennon. From the obvious candidate, Yoko Ono (who isn’t the horrible monster that nearly every Lennon book portrays her to be) to an ordinary young man who met and was fortunate enough to befriend his idol, the reader gets an honest and truthful glimpse into the life of John Lennon through those who knew him the best.

Another enjoyable aspect of Lennon Revealed dealt with Lennon’s generosity and charity and his constant plight for the “working class hero”. From the days of “hair peace” to Mr, Kane’s insightful story of John’s assistance with a Philadelphia fundraiser for charity. Those stories told volumes about how much he cared about the human race. Each of his contributions made the world a little bit better.

The final chapter is a first for any of the Lennon books I’ve been fortunate enough to read over the years. It is filled with stories from the fans; the people who Lennon would inspire and touch in so many ways. From teenagers who weren’t even alive when we lost John, to those who were there from the beginning to the tragic end and everyone in between. Their words of joy, grief, inspiration and love are a fabulous addition to a very candid, honest and beautiful book. I am honored to be one of those fans who are included in the book.

There are many more gems in Lennon Revealed about Lennon’s life and I urge everyone to give it a read. It’s insightful, honest and leaves the reader with a better sense of who John Lennon really was; a father, a husband, a friend, a lover, a New Yorker, a poet, a musician, a humanitarian and a human being.